O.Henry’s Writing Style
Abstracts:
The O.henry-style ending is unexpctedly surprising .We may show bitter smiles after knowing how things end up ,like tragic and sad things which reflect the cruel social reality are described in a comic way.
Key words:
Writing style writing technique Surprising Endings Wry Humor
1:Introduction:
O.Henry, one of the three mo s t famous short-story writers in the world, enjoys equal status with Chekhov and Maupassant. He played an important role in short stories‘development especially in America and was called ―the founder of American stories.‖The social life of that time in America was mirrored in O.Henry‘s unique writing style. O.Henry‘s short stories gained their popularity in China and some of his famous works were even lected into students textbook. The study of O.Henry‘s writing style can help us to get a better undstanding of American life in that time, learn the writing technics of s
订婚hort stories, and appreciate the art of short stories.
2. A brief introduction to O.Henry and his main works
O. Henry, originally named William Sydney Porter, was born on September 11, 1862, in North Carolina in a docotor‘s family. In his lengendary life , Porter took a number of different jobs ,first as pharmacist then as a draftsman, bank teller and journalist. He also began writing as a sideline. When he worked as a bank teller, he was accud by the bank of embezzlement and fled to Honduras to avoid interrogation. He returned in February 1897 to e his dying wife and was arrested and ntenced to five years in prison. While in prison, Porter, as a licend pharmacist, worked in the prison hospital as the night druggist and had fourteen stories published under various pudonyms during that time. Porter was relead for good behavior after rving three years. Later he moved to New Y ork City and specialized in writing.
In his prolific writing life , O. Henry wrote more than 300 short stories and among tho are some world famous pieces:
A Service of Love，The Cop And The Anthem，The Gift of The Magi，The Last Leaf，The Road We Take ，After Twenty Y ears, The Furnished Room, The Man Higher Up，The Ransom of Red Ch
ief，The Romance of A Busy Broker，An Unfinished Story.
3 Investigation of O.Henry’s writing technique
3.1Careful Plotting and Ironic Coincidence
O.Henry‘s success lies in his theme choice from real life and careful plotting. The changeable plots keep the readers in suspence and the ironic coincidence surpris the reader but at the same time makes them feel it should happened in that way.
In His most famous story, The Gift of The Magi he spins the story of a young couple who are short of money but desperately want to buy each other Christmas gifts. The husband lls his only favorite watch to buy a t of combs for his wife, while she us the money from lling her beautiful hair to buy him a pocket chain. The author arranges the entire plot just to make readers anticipate the excitement of the outcome. From the beginning, the readers keep guessing what the couple will buy for each other, and the irony of their gifts is the greatest suspen the author puts into this story. However, after deading, the readers will agree to the title The Gift of the Magi becau there will be no gift in the world more valuable than love.
3.2 Surprising Endings
3.2.1Ironic ending
At the end of The Cop And The Anthem, O.Henry gave us a great surpri --- when Soapy was planning to be somebody in the world, he悟性
was announced to be arrested. It was difficult to say it was a tragedy or a comedy to Soapy, yet the reality is opposite to Soap y‘s mind again.This ending is out of readers‘ imagination, and the sudden stop makes it difficult for readers to understand the story immediately. This is the O .Henry‘s working --- the unexpected ending that beyond the people‘s normal expectation. The ending was both ironic and unexpected in the stories. Between dream and truth, there is a distance. While just this kind of ending attracts more and more readers of worldwide to O.Henry‘s novels. His extraordinary ending rais the story to a higher level, thus he owns everyone‘s admiration.中秋节习俗
3.2.2 Implication ending
Some of O. Henry‘s short stories didn‘t explain a cle ar end but for some hints, so that the readers understands tacitly. Unfinished Story just posss this kind of ending. It tells about a poor beautiful girl Darcie rejected the wealthy, bad Piggy‘s invitation to dinner by faith. Y et if Piggy asks Darcie again to dine with him, the poor girl could not assure that she would be able to reject it.
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The author has not explained. But readers will be conscious of beautiful and poverty of Darcie‘s fate will be more mirable, they will certainly like the hate of the week and only give five or six dollar a week.
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3.2.3 Solution ending
Definition:Using readers‘curious mental, he often t some mysteries and do not give the answer until the end of the novel so that he can make the readers suddenly enlightened, in this way readers can have a deeper understanding about the mysteries in the novel.
For example: In The Song And The Sergeant a warmly welcomed comedy was mesd up by the comedy troupe. The actor and actress were blaming each other, they played it again in the police station, and when the actor sang‖will you marry me‖ emotionally, the actress suddenly realized his love and cried. Until then, everyone (including the readers) knew where the problems are and gave them their best wishes.
童年小说3.2.4 Coincidence ending香菜煮水的功效
Definition: At the end of the stories, it often appears some unexpected coincidence (also include " untimeliness").
课外阅读笔记
The coincidence and untimeliness in the ending not only increa drama and interest of the work but also provoke thought. The coincidences can be divided into two parts: one is purely by chance; it lets readers think more deeply about the necessity of the story throughout occasionality. In The Cop And The Anthem, Soapy, who prepared for the coming winter----trying his best to be arrested into the prison, was finally moved by the anthem of the church. And he decided to make a man of
